December 13th, 2017 09:54 a.m.

Reconnu named KCLA volunteer of the year

Joan Reconnu

Joan Reconnu was named Kershaw County Literacy Association (KCLA) Volunteer of the Year.Reconnu has been active with KCLA in many ways. Currently, she is an enthusiastic member of the “Read Aloud, Kershaw County” team. The team plans weekly visits to the after school program at Trinity apartments. There are six others who will participate.

Reconnu has a long-time interest in teaching English as a second language (ESL). Under her leadership many people, mostly Hispanic, are learning to speak English. English can be a confusing language even for “native speakers.”

As with other programs with which KCLA is associated, volunteers are trained periodically to teach English as a second language. Reconnu is the trainer for these classes. When asked how many ESL tutors she has trained, she said, “About 80, but unfortunately not all of them stayed with the program.”

Reconnu became interested in literacy when she took a class at Ridgecrest Southern Baptist Camp. Ever since, she was hooked! She began to teach people to read. About 30 years ago, she took another class, this time, about teaching English to non-English-speaking people. She has been teaching a class at ATEC for several years. There are other classes around town that she teaches or oversees. Since about 1985, she has been training second language tutors.

Presently, Reconnu is teaching an ESL class for 10 people.

KCLA is proud to name Reconnu as the Literacy Volunteer of the Year. She sets a challenging pace for the rest of the volunteers. She represents most of the areas where KCLA is active.

About KCLA

KCLA trains tutors and places tutors with students who want to learn to read or to read better. As a part of the learning program, they contact tutors and are available to support them on their journey. KCLA trains ESL tutors and leads ESL classes. It also offers tutoring for second language students one-on-one.